Raging 2nd half earns Spurs young duo new nickname surging through social media

When Zach Collins said the team was no longer thinking about what they were missing when some of their guys were out, he wasn't lying. The Spurs continue to prove they are as deep of a team as there is in the NBA right now. There was no Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, or Jeremy Sochan, but San Antonio found a way to defeat the Warriors by relying on their two young stars late in the ball game.

Before Victor Wembanyama made his return, Stephon Castle was garnering praise left and right due to his play and poise. The question of a nickname for him and Wemby came up, and fans had seemingly settled on one before the Golden State game. By the time the game ended, the nickname had fully taken hold, and Area 51 was born.

Area 51 may be the best nickname for an NBA duo ever

The Splash Bros gets an honorable mention as the second-best nickname, but no others come to mind other than the Twin Towers, which was great but doesn't match the other two. Area 51 gets the nod as the best name because it works on several levels. The government site Area 51 is a no-fly zone for civilian or military aircraft. It's a highly secure area.

So, naturally, with defense being the calling card of Wembanyama and Castle, the link is easy to see. The rumors are that Area 51 is where they guard extraterrestrial creatures or alien-adjacent objects. Do you see where this is going? Their jersey numbers put the cherry on top, making it the most perfect pseudonym of all time. Besides, it sounds so cool.

However, living up to the name is more important than cool points—this is a competition.

The Spurs got a hand from several players, but it wasn't their best shooting night as a group. They had to lean on their defense to get the job done and they did that, kicking it into high gear in the fourth quarter.

Last night's performance was like warming up an old car. It took it a while to get going, but once it did, it didn't let you down. Defense is old, reliable for San Antonio, yet they allowed the Warriors to drop 31 in the third quarter. That's been their best frame this year, but they only won it by two points, so they revved that defensive engine in the fourth and shut down one of the best offenses in the league.

Steph Castle suffocated Steph Curry all night but helped force the Chef into three turnovers in the final period of the game. Victor Wembanyama was all over the floor, denying the Warrior's actions and making them think twice about challenging him in the paint. He added two blocks to his stat line in the fourth quarter alone, helping to hold Golden State to 13 points while SA dropped 33.

This team flipped a 17-point deficit into a 10-point victory over the best team in the Western Conference without several key pieces.

It was an emphatic win accomplished by staying together and picking up the energy when it was needed most: to close the game. It's what Chris Paul has been showing the guys, and they pulled this one off with the Point God on the bench to close most of the game out. What a night.